These teens are in school before many classmates even wake up. They’ve already studied before the first high school bell rings.

Welcome to seminary class at the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Every morning at 6 a.m., students troop to the local stake to learn about their religion.

“The main objective of the program is to provide religious instruction to supplement the secular instruction that they receive in school,” explained Jim Snyder, who has taught more than a dozen years. “In addition, it gets the students off on a spiritual start each day of school.”

Senior Ashley Bugarin of Hacienda Heights agreed.

“It’s a great way to start your day,” the 18-year-old Wilson High student said with a wide smile. “And we’re wide away by the time we start regular school.”

“I really like it,” said Jessica Simpson, a 17-year-old senior at Covina High School.

Of course the curriculum is a little different in the Mormon church. Snyder said the teens study the Old and New Testaments, as well as the Book of Mormon and LDS church history.

“We also teach church doctrine,” said Randy Holman, who teaches teens at Covina High. “Our challenge is to make it worth their while.”

The local high school students will study a biblical passage, then discuss the moral implications. This gives them many lessons to live by.

“Three of my children graduated from seminary and I could see a big change in my kids,” said Susan Norris of Hacienda Heights. Her son, Adam, was taking the class before going to Los Altos.

“Sometimes it’s hard to get up early, but it’s worth it,” said the 16-year-old Los Altos student.

Often, the teens are asked to share a message or experience on that day’s topic. These are very special lessons for students and staff.

“Their insights are amazing,” Snyder said. “The students comments can be very profound.”

To earn credit for a semester, a student must attend 80 percent of the time. The curriculum is based on a four-year cycle that corresponds with the four years of high school.

“There are 114 students attending the various high schools within our Stake boundaries,” Snyder said.

The study gives the teens a deeper understanding of the living Gospel. It also helps them mature spiritually.

Just ask Razelle Maico, a senior at Los Altos. While there are no quizzes in seminary, the 18-year-old says the real test is life, which is why the teens don’t mind getting up early so they can be at the church by 6 a.m.

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